The novel is written in first-person point of view, from Zoey’s perspective; Zoey’ s inner thoughts and dialogue help characterize her. A key aspect of Zoey’s personality is her curiosity: She asks many rhetorical and investigative questions. It is therefore fitting that the novel starts with her asking her cat, Sassafras, “What is it?” (5), when he turns over a rock. Word choice and punctuation portray Zoey as excited about the world around her. They find “a billion roly-poly bugs!” (5), with the exclamation mark and use of hyperbole showing Zoey’s thrilled reaction, creating a comedic tone, and emphasizing Zoey’s youth. However, Zoey’s enthusiasm is tempered by her scientific approach to observation: Zoey immediately corrects herself, adjusting “a billion” to the more factual “at least twenty” (5). She is childlike, but also smart and interested—a combination of traits that reflected in the novel’s blending of fantasy and realism. 

Zoey has a warm and close relationship with her mother. When she is proud of her bug circus, she immediately wants her mom to come and see: “We made a circus! With a tightrope and everything. Can you come see? Please?” (11). By splitting up Zoey’s outburst into sentence fragments, Citro emphasizes how much Zoey wants to tell her mom about her project. It is clear that based on previous experience, Zoey expects her mom to express similar delight and play with Zoey’s creation.

The inciting incident that kicks off the novel’s plot is Zoey’s mom’s imminent departure. The trip is important to the emotional and narrative stakes. First, her mom has never left for so long before, so Zoey is nervous. However, the situation also provides room for her to take on a new level of independence and responsibility. At the same time, Zoey’s mom’s absence facilitates Zoey’s interaction with the magical animals. Zoey’s mom worries about leaving the magical animals, which explains why she is holding the photo and looking at the barn distractedly. Her unusual behavior creates suspense and prompts Zoey to discover the photo that reveals that she has the same power of seeing magical animals that her mom does.

As Zoey’s mom tells her about the magical animals, Citro establishes one of the novel’s key themes: Comparing Science to Magic. Throughout the novel, both science and magic are characterized as fascinating and mysterious. However, while the novel’s magical elements defy explanation, science allows her to establish the rules for how the magical beings she encounters function in their world. Scientific process is central to how both Zoey and her mom learn about magic. For instance, when Zoey’s mom found Pip and learned magical creatures exist, she instead at first “was sure I’d discovered a new species!” (15). The point of this story is that new phenomena must first be evaluated scientifically, before being categorized as magical. This encourages readers’ STEM interest and suggests that discovering the world, through science, is a type of magic.

The theme of Trusting Yourself and Asking for Help is also introduced in this section. Zoey’s mom gives Zoey seemingly conflicting instructions. First, she stresses her daughter’s growing independence: “This must seem like a lot of responsibility. But I know you’ll do your best” (29). At the same time, she tells Zoey to call if she needs help, showing that Zoey’s self-reliance comes with stable support. Overall, Zoey’s mom encourages her to trust herself and her abilities. Zoey’s self-talk mirrors her mom’s encouragement. She reminds herself that “[her] mom was [her] age when she helped Pip. A kid had done this alone before. Which meant [she] could handle it” (27). This section of the novel emphasizes that despite her initial trepidation, Zoey has a positive attitude about her capacity to learn new things and solve potentially complex problems.

Most illustrations in the novel supplement the plot and narrative, although in a few instances, the illustrations contain details about Zoey’s experimental process that do not appear in the narrative. Typically, however, the illustrations underscore and more precisely define emotion and setting. For example, Page 16 depicts Zoey’s mom telling her about her initial discovery of Pip. It shows the adult woman sitting at her desk, holding both hands out in an explanatory gesture. In a thought bubble, Zoey’s mom as a young girl holds a frog in her cupped hands. The fact that both figures are making the same gesture shows that they are the same person and emphasizes the connection between past and present. Other illustrations heighten characterization. For example, in the same illustration, there is a page of writing on Zoey’s mom’s desk. The words are very small, but recognizable as text from the opening scene of this novel. The detail emphasizes the importance of Zoey’s mom’s childhood experiences to who she is now.